A Boy Named Chance in a Land Without Heart Surgeons

I went to Kigali in Rwanda to report on the type of heart disease afflicting Chance and millions of other young people. I was supposed to be a fly on the wall. Before I knew it, I was trying to help.

By Denise Grady

At 16, Chance Mwunguzi had been sick for years, and his mother, a teacher, had done everything in her power to get him help, even selling their home to pay for his medical care. Chance had two diseased heart valves and needed surgery to replace them. Without it, he would not survive.

Their country, Rwanda, has no heart surgeons. Chance’s doctors recommended traveling to India for surgery, but the family could not afford it.

I went to Kigali to report on the type of heart disease afflicting Chance and millions of other young people. I was hoping to find progress in treating and preventing it.

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